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November 10, 2005

Australian WISP Offers Mobile WiMax Today

By Glenn Fleishman

Somehow, Unwired in Australia has a PC Card and working mobile WiMax long before the standard has been set and equipment should be shipping: APC Magazine reviews the card and service that uses Navini pre-WiMax technology. The network was designed for fixed-antenna access, but the company has done on the ground testing in some areas, and is making the card available for Aus$349. Access is Aus$74.95 monthly for 2 gigabytes of transfer and 750 Kbps access speeds. The service is available in and around Sydney.

The reviewer likes the simplicity: the Navini card’s drivers make it appear just like another network device with no special applications for access. Mac users are cut out at the moment. The device and service worked marvelously in their testing, and the reviewer found it excellent compared to similar 3G and broadband wireless services that use other technology.

However, the 2 GB limit rankled the writer for what could be a primary broadband connection. He also noted that the system doesn’t offer station-to-station seamless handoffs with a constant IP address. This makes it portable but not mobile, I think.

Posted by Glennf at November 10, 2005 1:57 PM

Categories: Mobile WiMax, international

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